The Crookston Pirate Girl’s soccer picked up their second win in three matches following a 7-1 win over Walker-Hackensack-Akeley in a Section 8A match played on the Crookston High School Soccer Field.
In the first half, Crookston dominated possession against a Walker-Hackensack-Akeley side featuring just seven high school players. The Pirates had 13 shots on goal and were able to take the lead into halftime. Twenty minutes into the match, Crookston broke through as Cassie Solheim scored with a close-range chance giving the hosts a 1-0 lead. Three minutes later, Aleah Bienek sent a long through ball up the field for Solheim, who chipped a shot from the edge of the 18-yard box over the Walker-Hackensack-Akeley goalkeeper and into the open net giving Crookston a 2-0 lead. The Pirates took the 2-0 lead into halftime after not allowing a single shot from the Wolves. “We knew this was a winnable game, and we wanted to get the seventh seed,” explained Crookston assistant coach Anna Brekken (head coach Sarah Reese was not at the game). “It’s a sloppy field, and we needed to get some goals early. Our goal was to score early in the game and try to get the momentum going in our favor. Cassie got a couple of excellent goals towards the middle of the first half, which gave us momentum and gave us some confidence going into the second half.”
In the second half, Crookston set the tone with an early goal and continued to pour it on. Just 25-seconds into the second half, Makenze Epema took a pass from Dillynn Wallace and fired her shot into the net, giving Crookston a 3-0 advantage. “It was super important (to score the first goal of the second half),” added Brekken. “Sarah (Reese) always talks about how statistically a two-goal lead is the most dangerous in soccer, and we’ve been let down with a two-goal lead in a match earlier this season. So we emphasized moving our feet and remaining active to start the second half.” In the 55th minute, Keona Arnold scored off the second assist from Dillynn Wallace, putting the Pirates in front 4-0. Cassie Solheim completed her hattrick off an assist from Danielle Haake two minutes later, expanding Crookston’s lead to 5-0. Clara Meyer took a pass from Keona Arnold and scored two more minutes later, capping off a three-goal spurt over six minutes allowing the Pirates’ advantage to grow to 6-0. Crookston scored in the 67th minute off a pass from Cassie Solheim to Clara Meyer capping of the Pirates’ scoring output. Walker-Hackensack-Akeley scored the final goal of the match in the last minute to avoid the shutout when Gabby Cairns chipped a shot into the back of the net before Crookston closed out the 7-1 win. “It’s so awesome for our seven seniors,” explained Brekken after the Pirates secured the win in their final home match of the season. “They all weren’t able to play at times this year due to injuries and stuff, but it was fun to get them all out there today. Get them some quality time and get them a win in their last game on their home field. We’re really at the peak of our team right now. We had an excellent game here, a really good game at East Grand Forks, and this past weekend we had a couple of good games, so we’re peaking at the right time.”
Crookston improves to 4-13. The Pirates return to the field on Tuesday for the first round of the Section 8A playoff on the road against an opponent yet to be determined. Walker-Hackensack-Akeley falls to 0-9.
| 1st | 2nd | Final | |
| Walker-Hackensack-Akeley | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Crookston | 2 | 5 | 7 |
Scoring
20:00 – CROX – Cassie Solheim
23:00 – CROX – Cassie Solheim (Aleah Bienek)
40:25 – CROX – Makenze Epema (Dillynn Wallace)
55:00 – CROX – Keona Arnold (Dillynn Wallace)
57:00 – CROX – Cassie Solheim (Danielle Haake)
59:00 – CROX – Clara Meyer (Keona Arnold)
67:00 – CROX – Clara Meyer (Cassie Solheim)
79:00 – WHA – Gabby Cairns
| Saves | 1 | 2 | Total |
| Brooke Vinkemeier – WHA | 11 | 4 | 15 |
| Reese Swanson – Crox | 0 | 0 | 0 |
